Tunisia

2015 UNHCR subregional operations profile - North Africa

| Overview |

The North Africa subregion remains either a transit or final destination for sizeable mixed migration flows from sub-Saharan Africa. The instability still affecting some parts of the subregion, in particular Libya, continues to generate irregular movements to Europe. Since the start of 2014, UNHCR offices throughout North Africa have witnessed an increase in the number of asylum-seekers.

The ongoing unrest in some countries has created greater protection needs, with increased numbers of refugees and asylum-seekers being arrested and detained, particularly those from sub-Saharan Africa. Terrorist activity in the Sahel and Sinai regions, as well as fighting between rival militia in Libya, have also affected UNHCR's operations, reducing access to asylum.

The key challenge facing UNHCR in North Africa continues to be the arrival of asylum-seekers where regional countries are unstable and witnessing a period of transition. This is exacerbated by the absence of national and regional strategies for managing mixed migration movements, and the lack of national asylum systems consistent with international standards.

Local integration also remains a challenge in the subregion, while the prospects for voluntary repatriation for most refugee groups in the region are limited. The main durable solution for the most vulnerable continues to be resettlement.

The profile of people of concern to UNHCR in countries in the North Africa subregion is not expected to change significantly in 2015, with the exception of Libya, where the location of some people of concern is unknown following recent unrest in the country.

Other than the refugees in camps in Algeria and Mauritania (see below), most refugees and asylum-seekers in North Africa reside in urban areas. UNHCR has registered 155,000 Syrians who have sought refuge in the North Africa subregion, approximately 140,000 of whom are in Egypt. Another 50,000 non-Syrian refugees registered with UNHCR are also living in urban situations.

However, UNHCR's urban programmes in the countries of the region are relatively small, with limited capacity to assist the growing numbers of refugees and asylum-seekers. These populations face difficult socio-economic challenges, as they lack legal status and work permits. The Office helps them gain access to housing, basic social services and opportunities to become self-reliant.

An increasing number of asylum-seekers from South Sudan and Sudan have been registered by UNHCR in Egypt. The Office has also reached an agreement with the Egyptian authorities on the transfer of several hundred refugees and asylum-seekers from Salloum Camp (near the Egyptian-Libyan border) to Cairo, pending departure for resettlement or other durable solutions.

Fighting in Libya in mid-2014 prompted the organization to share a contingency plan with respective authorities in Egypt and Tunisia, and to implement emergency preparedness measures, in particular in southern Tunisia.

In 2015, UNHCR will continue to support building the capacity of local authorities in countries such as Algeria and Morocco as they establish national asylum infrastructure. Once the laws are adopted by national structures, the Office will provide training, conduct workshops and facilitate professional exchanges.

There are some 50,000 Malian refugees at Mauritania's Mbera Camp, near the Mali border. Movements into the country and spontaneous returns have stabilized. Biometric registration recently completed by UNHCR and the Government has enhanced the protection afforded to this group, by allowing the organization to optimize its interventions. Hopes are rising for a political breakthrough that re-establishes peace in Mali and prompts the start of a repatriation programme. In 2015, close attention will be given to the likelihood of voluntary returns to Mali, while tailoring an appropriate UNHCR response.

The Sahrawi refugees in Algeria are settled in five camps near Tindouf. Owing to the remoteness of the area, they remain dependent on humanitarian assistance with little prospect of self-reliance as income-generating activities are scarce. The Government estimates that there are 165,000 refugees in the camps. Pending a registration exercise, UNHCR's assistance programme will continue to be based on a planning figure of 90,000 vulnerable Sahrawi refugees. The Confidence Building Measures (CBM) programme for these refugees will continue in 2015, in an effort to meet the humanitarian needs of families who have been separated for a prolonged period of time. These measures will also help reduce the psychological isolation of the refugees, by restoring family and community links. The CBM activities complement the efforts of the United Nations to find a political solution to this protracted refugee situation. More than 20,000 people have benefitted from the CBM programme's family visits. In total, 48,000 people have registered for the programme since its 2004 inception, and further expansion will continue in 2015, in addition to cultural seminars.

Fragile security and instability in Egypt make addressing the needs of people of concern more challenging. Worryingly, this has also stretched public tolerance for the growing number of Syrians arriving in the country. The Office will continue to advocate for maintaining this protection space in 2015.

| Response and implementation |

UNHCR's operations in Algeria, Egypt and Mauritania are covered in separate chapters.

The organization will seek to expand partnerships with States, governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society, to develop fair and efficient legislative and administrative frameworks for asylum. The Office's strategic priorities remain: delivering life-saving assistance; ensuring protection for all people of concern; seeking durable solutions, including resettlement as a protection tool; and preparing for new emergencies.

In Libya, with the eruption of fighting between rival militia, large numbers of refugees and asylum-seekers are taking the risk of crossing the Mediterranean with people smugglers. So far in 2014, more than 110,000 such people have arrived on Italian shores, of whom half originate from the Syrian Arab Republic (Syria) and Eritrea. UNHCR will intensify efforts to address such mixed-migration phenomena in a comprehensive manner, working with Governments, IOM and NGOs.

The eruption of civil conflict across the main urban centres in Libya in 2014 led to the evacuation of all international presence and the suspension of UNHCR activities. In 2015, depending on the security situation and the re-establishment of access to populations of concern, UNHCR will seek support for its activities from the national authorities and other partners in the country. It will visit and provide assistance to people of concern in detention and advocate for alternatives to incarceration. UNHCR will also strengthen registration, ensure that adequate protection mechanisms are in place, provide capacity-building workshops for government officials, and reinforce the pursuit of durable solutions.

In Morocco, the development and establishment of a national asylum system continues. The Ad-hoc Committee, of which UNHCR is a member, has reviewed several hundred cases and regularized the situation of 835 people of concern, in accordance with international legal standards. UNHCR will continue supporting government institutions and civil society as they enhance their capacity to manage asylum requests.

Pending the adoption of an asylum law in Tunisia, a priority for UNHCR will be to maintain sufficient capacity to conduct refugee status determination while building national capacities to assure international protection of refugees and asylum-seekers. In 2015, the Office will assist the Government of Tunisia in adopting and setting up a comprehensive national protection system; this would allow the authorities to progressively assume their responsibilities under the 1951 Refugee Convention.

UNHCR will also work to ensure that refugees are granted access to public services in Tunisia. Accordingly, supporting local structures and organizations will be essential to provide protection and assistance, in particular for refugees and asylum-seekers with special needs. In the predominantly urban context, the organization will implement a community-based protection approach, with the support of relevant national and international actors.

| Financial information |

In the North Africa subregion, UNHCR's financial requirements increased significantly in 2012 in the aftermath of the Arab Spring and the subsequent spread of conflict, including in Mali. The Syria crisis is having a significant impact on operations in North Africa, while repatriation of Malian refugees from Mauritania is still hampered by insecurity in the northern part of Mali.

Since 2012, total requirements for the subregion have stabilized and are set at USD 180.4 million for 2015, almost entirely allocated to the refugee programme.

Persons recognized as refugees under the 1951 UN Convention/1967 Protocol, the 1969 OAU Convention, in accordance with the UNHCR Statute, persons granted a complementary form of protection and those granted temporary protection. It also includes persons in a refugee-like situation for whom refugee status has, for practical or other reasons, not been ascertained. In the absence of Government figures, UNHCR has estimated the refugee population in many industrialized countries based on 10 years of individual asylum-seeker recognition.

Persons whose applications for asylum or refugee status are pending at the end of 2014 at any stage in the asylum procedure.

Refugees who have returned to their place of origin during 2014. Source: country of origin and asylum.

Persons who are displaced within their country and to whom UNHCR extends protection and assistance. It also includes people in IDP-like situations. This category is descriptive in nature and includes groups of persons who are inside their country of nationality or habitual residence and who face protection risks similar to those of IDPs but who, for practical or other reasons, could not be reported as such.

IDPs protected/assisted by UNHCR who have returned to their place of origin during 2014.

Refers to persons who are not considered as nationals by any State under the operation of its law. This category refers to persons who fall under the agency's statelessness mandate because they are stateless according to this international definition, but data from some countries may also include persons with undetermined nationality.

Refers to individuals who do not necessarily fall directly into any of the other groups but to whom UNHCR may extend its protection and/or assistance services. These activities might be based on humanitarian or other special grounds.

The data are generally provided by Governments, based on their own definitions and methods of data collection.
A dash (-) indicates that the value is zero, not available or not applicable.

Resettlement from Tunisia's Choucha Camp

Between February and October 2011, more than 1 million people crossed into Tunisia to escape conflict in Libya. Most were migrant workers who made their way home or were repatriated, but the arrivals included refugees and asylum-seekers who could not return home or live freely in Tunisia.

UNHCR has been trying to find solutions for these people, most of whom ended up in the Choucha Transit Camp near Tunisia's border with Libya. Resettlement remains the most viable solution for those registered as refugees at Choucha before a cut-off date of December 1, 2011.

As of late April, 14 countries had accepted 2,349 refugees for resettlement, 1,331 of whom have since left Tunisia. The rest are expected to leave Choucha later this year. Most have gone to Australia, Norway and the United States. But there are a more than 2,600 refugees and almost 140 asylum-seekers still in the camp. UNHCR continues to advocate with resettlement countries to find solutions for them.

Resettlement from Tunisia's Choucha Camp

Crisis in Libya

UNHCR is working with the Tunisian and Egyptian authorities and aid groups to manage the dramatic influx of tens of thousands of people fleeing Libya. By the beginning of March, two weeks after the violence erupted in Libya, more than 140,000 people had fled to the neighbouring countries, while thousands more were waiting to cross. Most are Egyptian and Tunisian nationals, though small numbers of Libyans and other nationalities are managing to escape. UNHCR is particularly concerned about thousands of refugees and other foreigners trapped inside Libya, especially people from sub-Saharan Africa. The following photo essay gives a glimpse into what is happening at the borders.

Crisis in Libya

Crush at the Tunisian border

At the Tunisia-Libya border, a heaving crush of thousands of people anxious to leave the insecurity of Libya gathered in no-man's land and on the Libyan side of the border on 2 March, 2011. Most were young men, principally migrant workers from Tunisia and Egypt. They were desperate to go home or find shelter and safety in Tunisia. After several nights sleeping out in the open, many were exhausted and hungry. As the crowd surged towards the border gate, several people were injured. The Tunisian Red Crescent is on hand to provide medical support for all those in need. UNHCR officials were also waiting on the Tunisian side of the border, supporting the Tunisian authorities and aid organizations.

Crush at the Tunisian border

Going home

During the past two weeks, UNHCR has worked with the Tunisian government, Tunisian Red Crescent and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to respond to the dramatic influx of over 90,000 people fleeing the violence in Libya. The majority are migrant workers from Egypt, Tunisia, Bangladesh, China, Thailand and Vietnam. Tens of thousands were flown home following an appeal from UNHCR and IOM to governments to send flights to evacuate them.

Going home

Tunisia's tented transit camp

A new camp full of UNHCR tents, has sprung up close to Tunisia's border with Libya to provide shelter to thousands of migrant workers desperate to get hope. The UNHCR-run facility is already full, with 15,000 people from around Africa and Asia who have fled from Libya.

Most of the new arrivals are penniless and have no hope of making it home on their own. Many of the sub-Saharan Africans arriving at the camp say they fled because of threats and abuse, with some being attacked and robbed in their homes as well as at the checkpoints that have sprung up along many roads in Libya. Non-African arrivals also report having their belongings taken at the checkpoints, but say they have not been the victims of racism and threats.

With people continuing to arrive daily, UNHCR and other agencies are bracing themselves for what could be a large-scale humanitarian disaster if the fighting worsens and if large numbers of Libyans try to flee their country.

Tunisia's tented transit camp

Hip Hop Hooray

Saber, a young Somali refugee in Tunisia's Choucha camp, wants to become a hip hop artist.

Tunisia: Guterres at Choucha Camp

UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres revisits Choucha Camp in Tunisia and tells refugees he is searching for a solution for them.

Tunisia: Libyan Refugees

Over the past month more than 50,000 people, mostly ethnic Berbers, have across the Tunisia-Libya border at Dehiba. Some of them described why they fled Libya.